Community Partners | Fall 2012

1K FOR 1KID

Thirty-two children! In honor of Bishop Alfred W. Gwinn, who retired in August, congregations of the NC Conference of the United Methodist Church donated $32,200 to MHC—enough to complete annual care for 32 children. The offerings were a wonderful tribute to Bishop Gwinn and a blessing to our children and families.

Ten kids! Led by Jackie Abbott, United Methodist Men, United Methodist Women and Sunday School classes at Hayes Barton UMC, Raleigh, raised $10,000.

The Children’s Ministries at Highland UMC, Raleigh, staged its second annual lemonade sale in May to raise 1K FOR 1KID funds.

Courtney Pisano of Raleigh, a high school junior and founder of nonprofit Children’s Lasting Power, donated $1,700 in September. She raised the money with an Aug. 18 event at Triangle Town Center, where she created a 2,750-square-foot mosaic with MHC’s hearts logo using more than 44,000 Post-it notes. A team of volunteers worked eight hours to create the mosaic and three hours to unstick it.

Progress Energy and its Employee Giving Campaign contributed more than $70,000 through individual and matching gifts in the past year.

Trinity UMC, Jacksonville, raised nearly $1,000 in nine months by encouraging members to make honor or memorial gifts to MHC instead of purchasing fresh altar flowers. Silk arrangements and a bulletin notice signal that a donation has been made—a gesture with impact far beyond the life of a cut flower. The effort began after a church staffer saw a similar program at Farmville UMC in the Spring 2011 Spotlight. May inspiration bloom in other congregations!

Wells Fargo, East Raleigh District, donated $1,000 on Sept. 26. We are thankful to Lolla Lea, manager at North Hills Wells Fargo, for selecting MHC for a community partner grant.

FUN FOR A CAUSE

Members of the Army National Guard Combined Support Maintenance Shop, Raleigh, donated $1,807 from the fourth annual Intercession Golf Tournament to benefit MHC. The event was held Aug. 22 at Reedy Creek Golf Course at Four Oaks.

Jerod and Marnie Cohen of Apex placed the winning bid for a private Island Time Band show at A Winter’s Tale in February. In June,
they booked the band for a backyard party and invited their guests to support MHC, collecting $1,800 in gifts.

NC Theatre donated tickets for our kids to see Broadway musical shows —Oliver! in July and Legally Blonde the Musical in October.

PASS THE PLATE

Hayes Barton UMC, Raleigh, hosted more than 100 guests at the July 13 Hackley Education and Learning Program luncheon to honor students pursuing their higher-education goals with support from MHC. This annual event celebrates the academic achievements of students who’ve been in one or more of MHC’s residential programs (foster care, adoption, group and multipurpose homes).

United Methodist Men of the Silk Hope Charge cast nets into a stocked pond on Aug. 25 and fried up their catch to benefit MHC. Their community fish fry, plus a barbecue sale in the spring, yielded $1,300 from Sapling Ridge UMC, Pittsboro, and Mount Vernon UMC, Siler City.

CAMPS

Awesome! Thanks from a Child.

Methodist Home for Children received a letter from a 12-year-old foster child who’d gone to Camp Don Lee this summer thanks to the generosity of MHC supporters. In part, she wrote:

Camp Don Lee was the best experience I have ever experienced in my whole life. … As we drove to the camp I was too excited to go to sleep. When we pulled up on that dirt road I thought, “Oh God, what if I’m not like the others? What if I don’t fit in?” Then the car stopped and we were greeted with a friendly smile. I looked around and said to myself, “Why would someone just pay for a little girl you don’t even know to go to this awesome camp?”

As the days began and ended, I thought and thought I must be dreaming, this is paradise. We sailed, we swam, we fished, we rode Hobies. Camp Don Lee went over my expectations and over my board of awesomeness.

This child, and seven others in MHC care, attended Camp Don Lee and Camp Rockfish through the NC United Methodist Camp & Retreat Ministries. We want to thank all of our friends for helping to bring “awesomeness” into the lives of children who would not otherwise
have these experiences. We could not serve their needs—from basic shelter, to mentoring, to therapy, to summer camp—without your help.

Walk in Faith Sunday School Class at Wrightsville UMC, Wrightsville Beach, donated $200 to help T.J. Smith, newly adopted and featured in the Summer 2012 Spotlight, to attend Surf-N-Science Camp at UNC-Wilmington. Campers ages 13-16 learned about marine science and worked on their surfing skills.

INTO THEIR HANDS

Benson Memorial UMC, Raleigh, donated games, books, toiletries, gift cards, a bike and watches through its annual Christmas in July collection. The items were placed on the altar at July 22 worship services and presented to youth and staff from our North Hills group home.

Bethesda UMC, Durham, and Wakeﬁeld UMC, Raleigh, donated school supplies and gift cards for children heading back into the classrooms.

Volunteers from Edenton Street UMC, Raleigh, did yard work and planted flowers at our North Hills group home for the church’s Sept. 8 Great Day of Service.

Englewood UMC, Rocky Mount, collected toiletries and made health kits for more than 40 teens in group homes.

Gateway and Harbor District United Methodist Women, Sunday School classes and congregations donated school supplies through MHC’s Pack the Backpack program.

In celebration of her birthday in May, 6-year-old Natalie of Raleigh asked friends to donate toys to MHC rather than buy gifts for her. She and her mother, Liz Hanna, and brother, Noah, delivered the birthday collection June 15.

The MO/MHC Alumni Association gave $2,000 to the Jordan Child & Family Enrichment Center in June to offer summer childcare for two 4-year-old boys whose families could not afford tuition. In addition to providing care, the Jordan Center hired one boy’s mother as a teacher assistant and helped her with computer access and support as she worked toward a degree in early childhood education.